The Sisquoc River is a river in northeastern Santa Barbara County, California. It is a tributary of the Santa Maria River, which is formed when the Sisquoc River meets the Cuyama River. The river is 57.4 miles (92.4 km) long[1] and originates on the north slopes of Big Pine Mountain,[2] at approximately 6,430 feet (1,960 m).[3] Big Pine Mountain is part of the San Rafael Mountains, which are part of the Transverse Ranges.
The Sierra Madre Mountains form the watershed's boundary to the north, while the San Rafael Mountains form the southern boundary. The first half of the river, in the Los Padres National Forest, specifically the San Rafael Wilderness, travels roughly northwest. Outside of the National Forest, the river flows roughly west to its confluence with the Cuyama River, about 20 miles upstream from the Pacific Ocean. The river is completely free flowing and does not have any diversions. Its sole dam is a 3-meter dam on Horse Canyon, one of its tributaries, but it is filled with sediment and causes little restriction to the river's overall flow. It is designated as a wild and scenic river in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
The watershed has a Mediterranean climate and chaparral vegetation. Annual precipitation in the watershed varies from 13 to 38 inches, 95% of which falls between November and April. This means that the river is dry part of the year, as there are no reservoirs to store water. The lack of rain also causes the vegetation to get very dry and the fire hazard can be very high during the summer.
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The Zaca Fire burned a large portion of the Sisqouc River watershed in the summer of 2007.